Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by implements 67 days ago
I was taught “Edible (fit to be eaten as food) vs Eatable (capable of being chewed up and swallowed)” but modern usage seems to treat them as synonyms (the former just being more pleasant to eat than the latter).
2 comments

Hah, old memories unlocked. As a kid I remember using “eatable” to mess with people because it “wasn’t a word”.

Is it edible? Yeah, it is eatable.

Here I am, years later, learning I was right all along.

That's backwards, eatable is the stronger claim that means fit as food while edible just means safe to eat.
Pedantic difference; most people would reasonably assume either meant "OK to eat".
No more pedantic than the comment I was replying to. My advice would be not to use "eatable" at all because others will just think you're saying edible incorrectly.